WEC officials today announced the bout, and they later confirmed with MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) that the matchup is slated for the night’s preliminary card.

WEC 48 marks the WEC’s pay-per-view debut and takes place April 24 at ARCO Arena in Sacramento, Calif.

Pickett, whose nickname is “One Punch” (a reference not to his punching power but a resemblance to the character One Punch Mickey in the movie “Snatch”), made his WEC debut in December and stopped Kyle Dietz with a second-round Peruvian necktie. The move earned him a $10,000 “Submission of the Night” bonus.

The victory also extended the Cage Rage veteran’s current win streak to eight fights. Only one (a majority decision over Paul Reed) went the distance.

Johnson, meanwhile, makes his promotional debut with a perfect 5-0 record with five first-round stoppages. After competing in the King of the Cage and Genesis Fights promotions, Johnson, a well-rounded fighter known in the Pacific Northwest for his quickness and conditioning, headed to Alaska and defeated Jesse Brock (10-4 at the time) via 66-second head kick at an Alaska Fighting Championships event.